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José Antonio Zamora

In the small town of El Rocío, in Andalusia, Spain, an annual pilgrimage takes place on the second day of Pentecost. Hundreds of thousands of people from across Spain travel, often on horseback, to worship a small wooden statue of the Virgin Mary. As the tradition dates back to the 1700s, pilgrims usually wear traditional dress for the journey and celebration.

Through clouds of dust, riders make their journey to El Rocío in southern Spain. Every year, the pilgrimage attracts around a million visitors, who pay homage to an historic and sacred statue of the Virgin Mary.

During the pilgrimage of El Rocío, hundreds of thousands of people wearing traditional flamenco dress hop on horseback or into horse-drawn carts. Brotherhoods from the provinces of Huelva and Cádiz make their way along one of four routes to the village for a celebration that culminates 50 days after Easter.

"Every year on the feast of Saint Anthony the ceremony of the purification of animals, called Las Luminarias, is celebrated in Spain. In the province of Avila, horses and horsemen jump over bonfires in the ritual that has been maintained since the 18th century. The animals [are not hurt], and it is a ritual that is repeated every year. To make the photo, I moved from Seville to San Bartolomé de Pinares because I am very interested in photographing ancestral rites."

Each summer, thousands of people on horseback and foot flock to southern Spain, a celebration of Pentecost called the Pilgrimage of Rocío.